Article

Summaries of the Articles

(I).The Death of A Worker in Stadium Fall

The article illustrates an incidence where a worker was killed in Brazil after falling from a roof of a stadium being built to host 2014 World Cup (BBC, 2013). The worker named Marcleudo de Melo Ferreira aged 22 was working at the roof of the stadium approximately 115 feet from the ground. The worker died in hospital in Manaus after falling from the roof of the stadium. The victim was employed by a company subcontracted to construct the stadium to host the Brazil World cup 2014. Several construction workers have been killed at venues that are connected the Brazil World Cup 2014. The killings of the workers can be attributed to the working condition as constructors’ rushes to complete the stadium which are already behind the schedule. This has seen majority of workers working for long period of time with some reported to be working from Sunday to Sunday. Following the deaths of the construction workers, the union renewed their calls for strike to protest the working conditions.

(II). Explosion in US Animal Feed Processing Plants

The article reports the explosion that occurred at a US animal feed processing plants (Wilson, 2014). The explosion occurred at the International Nutrition plant in Omaha killing two people and injuring 10 people. There were 38 workers at the plant at the time of explosion and all of them were accounted for. The explosion interfered with lights in the building making workers to scramble for safety. Immediately after the explosion the entire building went black making some workers to use the light from their cell phones to make their way out of the building. The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration were to determine the cause of the explosion.

The Death of a Worker in Stadium Fall

The falling of the worker from the roof of the stadium can be attributed to poor working conditions. Since the stadium was scheduled to host the world cup 2014, constructors were working under pressure to meet the deadline hence forcing workers to work for longer hours. The workers were under pressure to complete the stadium within time hence become tired and fatigued. Another possible cause might have been as a result of poor facilities used by the workers. The facilities that were being used by the worker might have been poor, faulty or improperly maintained. One of the lessons that can be learnt from this incidence is that workers should not be put to work under pressure. The preparation for the various events such as World Cup should be done in advance to avoid late rushes.

There are various steps that can be taken to avoid such incidences to occur. One of the recommendations is to reduce the working hours of the workers. This can be achieved by introducing a system where workers are scheduled to work on shifts. This can reduce the pressure and fatigue caused as a result of working for long hours hence reduce the chances for such tragedies. Another recommendation that can reduce the problem in the future is to ensure that countries who are supposed to host World Cup have adequate stadiums. The selection of the country to hold World Cup should be based on the availability of stadiums. This will avoid rush that are associated with construction of stadiums so as to meet the deadline set by FIFA. The third recommendation is for the government authorities to ensure that all construction sites meet the necessary safety and healthy requirements so as to ensure the workers safety and healthy requirements are guaranteed (Goldenhar et al, 2001). The materials, tools, equipments and facilities used in the construction sites should be reqguarly inspected to ensure that they meet safety and health standards.

References

BBC. (2013). Brazil World Cup 2014: Worker dies in stadium fall retrieved from

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-25383023 on January 31, 2014

Goldenhar, L. M., LaMontagne, A. D., Katz, T., Heaney, C., & Landsbergis, P. (2001). The

intervention research process in occupational safety and health: an overview from the National Occupational Research Agenda Intervention Effectiveness Research team. Journal of occupational and environmental medicine, 43(7), 616-622.

Wilson S. (2014). Explosion at US animal feed processing plant kills two workers retrieved from

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/10585792/Explosion-at-US-animal-feed-processing-plant-kills-two-workers.html on January 31, 2014